When AI Becomes a Competitiveness Lever... and Some Still Sleep Through It

According to the McKinsey State of AI 2025 report, 90% of companies already use AI. Yet only 6% see a meaningful return on investment.

The McKinsey State of AI 2025 report confirms it: AI is everywhere. In processes, in teams, in tools.

But the results remain modest.

Most gains are qualitative: innovation, customer satisfaction, brand perception. Financially, only 39% of respondents observe an impact on their operating result, and on average less than 5%.

So what’s blocking? Why are so many companies missing the real value of artificial intelligence?

It’s not a technology question. It’s a culture question.

In many companies, AI usage is left completely open. I see it every day:

• everyone tests ChatGPT in their own corner,
• using their personal account,
• their habits,
• their intuitions…
• and no shared direction.

People think “it’s handy,” “it helps.”

In reality, professional quality slowly erodes.

• data fragments
• knowledge gets lost
• Good practices don’t circulate.
• Collective intelligence stops progressing.

And even in structures that ask for team training, I still see the same blind spot: a one-shot training, but completely free usage afterward.

• No framework.
• No follow-up.
• No governance.
• And therefore no real impact.

Since founding PAS À PAS DIGITAL, I’ve seen this reality everywhere. Even before AI’s rise, I was already auditing processes, workflows, tool overlaps, and loss of time.

And it was clear: when work methods aren’t framed, everything scatters.

With AI, this is even truer. AI doesn’t fix the gaps: it amplifies them. It reveals what holds… and what no longer holds.

AI is not a technical topic.
It is deeply human.
It’s a matter of posture, maturity, and change culture.
And no technology can do that for us.

High-performing companies have a clear and structured approach

High-performing companies don’t just accelerate. They reset everything.

And I see it in the field too: it’s not necessarily the biggest or most equipped companies, but those that dare ask the real questions:

Why do we do things this way? What has become obsolete in our habits? Which workflow can be redesigned? What do we keep? What do we let go?

Few companies are at this stage today. Many observe. Few truly question their practices.

Yet this is where everything begins.

As early as 2023, I had already been raising concerns about processes: duplications, loss of time, tools that don’t communicate, outdated routines.

Today, with AI at the heart of work, this reflection becomes essential.

Because if we don’t revisit the foundations, we simply digitalize outdated habits.

Innovation is not “adding AI.” It is accepting to do things differently.

This is what McKinsey calls the “High Performers”: companies that don’t patch the existing but redesign the way they work.

And what I observe every day: the real difference comes from this — the courage to rethink how work is done.

AI does not replace. It reveals.

Companies that succeed see AI as a tool for evolution, not substitution.

They keep humans in the loop. They train teams for thoughtful usage. They align their strategy with their values.

McKinsey calls them the “High Performers.”

Their strength lies in three elements:

• a clear vision
• redesigned processes
• a collective intention

No improvisation. No blind steering. An anchored culture.

What the management team needs to keep in mind

Integrating AI is not “following the trend.” It is preparing tomorrow’s competitiveness.

The coming years will make the difference between:

• those who frame usage and develop competencies
• and those who let things happen without vision

AI won’t do everything. But it will reveal everything. And the leader’s posture will make the difference.​

Sources et ressources

• McKinsey & Company – State of AI in 2025
• Harvard Business Review – Why Only 6% of Companies See Significant AI ROI
• Forbes Tech Council – AI Adoption: From Experimentation to Execution

About the author

Micheline Boutrin Deroire

Founder of PAS À PAS DIGITAL, strategic consultant in AI applied to work practices and the human transformation of organisations.

She accompanies managers, executives and team leaders who want to integrate artificial intelligence into their practices while cultivating a conscious managerial posture and an aligned culture of change.

Her approach connects four pillars: AI, digital optimisation, usage practices and posture — to transform without losing oneself.

Book a meeting

www.pasapas-digital.com/appointment/1

Contact me

+596 696 37 66 90 • [email protected]

Follow on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelineboutrin

Awards (2024)

Best Innovation & Strategic Change Consultancy Leader – Western Europe

Digital Transformation Expert of the Year – France